School Performance Review Fort Worth Independent School ...

May 9, 2001

The Honorable Rick Perry The Honorable Bill Ratliff The Honorable James E. "Pete" Laney Members of the 77th Legislature Commissioner James E. Nelson

Fellow Texans:

I am pleased to present our Texas School Performance Review of the Fort Worth Independent School District (FWISD).

This review is intended to help FWISD hold the line on costs, streamline operations and improve services to ensure that more of every education dollar goes directly into the classroom, with the teacher and children, where it belongs. To aid in this task, I contracted with Gibson Consulting Group of Austin, Texas.

We have made a number of recommendations to improve FWISD's efficiency. We also have highlighted a number of "best practices" in district operations to share with other districts--model programs and services provided by the district's administrators, teachers and staff. This report outlines 136 detailed recommendations that could save FWISD more than $23 million over the next five years, while reinvesting more than $10 million to improve educational services and other operations. Net savings are estimated to reach more than $13 million--savings that the district can redirect to the classroom.

We are grateful for the cooperation of FWISD's board, staff, parents and community members. We commend them for their dedication to improving the educational opportunities for our most precious resource in FWISD--our children.

I am also pleased to announce that the report is available on my Window on State Government Web site at .

Sincerely,

Carole Keeton Rylander Texas Comptroller

Fort Worth Independent School District

When I took office in January 1999, I set new standards

for school audits giving priority to districts with poor academic or financial performance and where the greatest number of students would benefit from an audit. Fort Worth ISD is the third largest school district in Texas with more than half of its students economically disadvantaged. It is facing both financial and academic challenges. That is what prompted me to select Fort Worth ISD for Texas School Performance Review (TSPR). The Fort Worth school board and superintendent all welcomed us with open arms and throughout the review have been an invaluable help.

The district has made significant gains in student performance in the last five years, however, student scores remain below state and regional averages and dropout rates are high. In addition, five schools/alternative programs in the district have recently been rated low performing--up from zero in 1998-99.

My TSPR team and I found that the district was being well managed and that in most areas the district was running in a cost-effective and efficient manner. Wherever possible, we looked for ways to help it operate more efficiently. The following recommendations for Fort Worth ISD will serve my goal of driving more of every education dollar directly into the classroom where it belongs. Contained in this report are 136 recommendations that, if fully implemented, could result in net savings for Fort Worth ISD of more than $13.4 million.

We found two big money-saving recommendations. First, we found the district could save nearly $3 million per year if it followed its own staffing formulas for everyone from campus administrators to custodians. Second, the use of

bus routing and tracking software could save the district almost $4.3 million over the next five years. This money could then be redirected to address the district's five major challenges:

1. Lagging test scores, primarily in the middle schools;

2. High dropout rates;

3. Better documented procedures;

4. A need for comprehensive planning; and

5. Successful implementation and integration of technology.

The number one problem is student performance. Passing test scores on the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) are 12 points lower than the state average for grade school students and 25 points lower for middle school students. This is unacceptable. To address the lagging test scores, I am recommending that the district immediately create and follow a plan to make that difficult transition from grade school to middle school more seamless.

In addition, FWISD's dropout rate increased dramatically in 1998-99--rising to 4.3 percent from 2.5 percent in 199798--while most peer districts and the state and regional rates remained relatively stable. I recommend the district address this problem from two directions: (1) from the inside by creating an Office of Student Attendance and Dropout Initiatives and (2) from the outside by creating a Dropout Prevention/Reduction Task Force, including community, business, education and civic organizations. The entire community needs to be involved in helping these children be successful in school.

By addressing these issues, I believe Fort Worth could get back on track to making its district the best possible. I am confident that school board members, school administrators, teachers and parents are all committed to making the district the best it can be for their students.

Carole Keeton Rylander, Texas Comptroller

Key Findings and Recommendations

During its seven-month review, TSPR examined Fort

Worth ISD (FWISD) operations and heard from employees, school board members, teachers, students, parents, and community and business leaders. Following are the major proposals TSPR has developed to help the district address various issues:

Major Proposals

Lagging Test Scores, Particularly in the Middle Schools

? Create an elementary to middle school transition plan. FWISD's Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS) scores are lower than Region 11 and the state. Additionally, the district does not sustain elementary-level student performance on TAAS at the middle and secondary levels. For example, the percentage of students passing all TAAS tests taken in grades 3, 4, 5 and 6 is 7 to 12 percentage points lower than the percentage of students passing all TAAS tests taken in those same grades in the region and the state. The percentage of students passing all TAAS tests taken in grades 7, 8 and 10 is 15 to 25 percentage points lower than the region and the state. FWISD could improve student performance by creating a districtwide elementary to middle school plan to identify critical issues regarding an effective transition.

? Increase the number of minorities and economically disadvantaged students taking advanced academic courses. FWISD's percentage of minority and economically disadvantaged students completing advanced academic coursework or taking the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) or the ACT Assessment college entrance exams remains lower than its peer districts, Region 11 and the state.

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